Pennsylvania 400 2016 at Pocono Raceway: Official results

Aug 1, 2016; Long Pond, PA, USA; NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Chris Buescher celebrates in victory lane after winning the Pennsylvania 400 at Pocono Raceway. Mandatory Credit: Matthew O
Aug 1, 2016; Long Pond, PA, USA; NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Chris Buescher celebrates in victory lane after winning the Pennsylvania 400 at Pocono Raceway. Mandatory Credit: Matthew O

Chris Buescher notches his first career Sprint Cup victory in 27th start, Jeff Gordon finishes 27th

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For every NASCAR season there is a surprise winner, and on Monday it was Chris Buescher’s turn. Driving the No. 34 Ford for FrontRow Motorsports, the 23-year-old got a little help from Mother Nature after the Pennsylvania 400 was red flagged because of fog and eventually called off short of the scheduled distance because rain was about to move in.

The Prosper, TX native is now just six points out of making the Chase despite the win. He has to finish the regular season 30th or better to be one of the 16 drivers vying for the championship. But that didn’t stop him from enjoying his first time in the winner’s circle.

“That’s pretty awesome.,” Buescher said.  “Wild circumstances here at Pocono.  This is gonna change our whole year right here, so this puts us in a good situation where we had a good day.  It was a lot of fun.  The guys really toughed it out.  We got a flat tire, but we’re headed in the right direction now, so that will help in points.  We got a win here, so we’ll take it any way we can get it.”

Despite leading only a dozen laps, Buescher thinks he and his team have some momentum going into the final races before the Chase begins.

“We’ve been definitely headed in the right direction.  The last six or seven weeks have been really good for us.  Kentucky was gonna be excellent for us, but is just didn’t play out.  It’s pretty awesome to be here right now.  I don’t know what to do right now.  We don’t have any of the team here right now.  The car is out on pit road.  This is a little different way to celebrate.”

As far as Jeff Gordon was concerned, he didn’t get the kind of finish he was hoping for subbing for Dale Earnhardt Jr. He finished 27th.

Here are the final results for the Pennsylvania 400:

1              Chris Buescher
2              Brad Keselowski
3              Regan Smith
4              Kevin Harvick
5              Tony Stewart
6              Kyle Larson
7              Denny Hamlin
8              Carl Edwards
9              Kyle Busch
10           Kurt Busch
11           Ryan Blaney
12           Ryan Newman
13           Austin Dillon
14           AJ Allmendinger
15           Kasey Kahne
16           Jimmie Johnson
17           Matt Kenseth
18           Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
19           Trevor Bayne
20           Jamie McMurray
21           Casey Mears
22           Danica Patrick
23           Michael McDowell
24           Brian Scott
25           Greg Biffle
26           Clint Bowyer
27           Jeff Gordon
28           Matt DiBenedetto
29           Michael Annett 46
30           Landon Cassill
31           Cole Whitt
32           David Ragan
33           Chase Elliott
34           Josh Wise
35           Paul Menard
36           Jeb Burton
37           Joey Logano
38           Martin Truex Jr.
39           Aric Almirola
40           Reed Sorenson

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